I just got through a long week of 3 performances a day. It was so taxing on my face and lips, but I made it through and did a great job! As musicians we will have weeks that are jam packed with performances and not much time to recover. How do you preserve your chops for these weeks? Here are some things that I do that help!
- Stamina- To play a ton of shows well, you need to practice and get your muscles and embouchure strong enough to handle lots of strenuous playing with few breaks, and to be able to play without warming up between long gaps of playing. A few weeks before your performances, start adding on 30 mins of extra practice onto your routine; focusing on range building and technical exercises that you consider to be incredibly difficult. (You should be doing these things already, but do them at the beginning and end of your practice session). The point is to achieve all of your normal practice goals, but then push yourself to the point of being almost exhausted. Don’t push so you cause injury or pain, just enough to really feel yourself working. Eventually you’ll increase stamina in all your playing!
- Take Care Of Yourself– Make sure you’re drinking enough water to keep your mouth from drying up and to prevent headaches. Eat healthy meals, and get plenty of sleep so you’re well rested and able to focus. I know it sounds basic, but from my personal experience these are some things that are easily overlooked, but so important.
- Easy Warm-Ups– The days of your performances you should just focus on your easy warm- ups that reinforce fundamentals of sound production. Long tones and simple lip slurs are my favorites. I stay away from using my high register or any exercise that is strenuous. I stay in my lower register and don’t go above a mezzo piano. I practice my long tones until I have a good tone quality and good control. That’s it! Don’t overdo it at the beginning of the day and then struggle when you have to perform!
- Don’t Practice- YEAH I SAID IT! DON’T PRACTICE; only the the duration of your hectic performances! If you have back to back performances for 3 days, that is not the time to whip out your concerto or audition materials. Focus on reserving all your energy for the performances, your other material will be there when you are done, don’t worry about all the things you SHOULD be doing, focus on what you ARE doing. We practice FOR performances!
- Breathing Exercises– We should always be working on breathing, but I find it especially helpful in busy performance weeks. Just like warm-ups, don’t go for the hardest exercises you know, just do the ones that wake up your lungs and get you ready. These are also really great to do on stage before you play; breathe in and out of the tempo to get your lungs ready for your entrance. I also like to practice inhaling and articulating opening passages before the performance. It’s a great tool to just practice the foundations of making sound without the strenuous
- Mouth piece buzzing– Warm-up and run through difficult passages just using your mouthpiece. This helps keep you ready to play without overworking anything.
- Focus- Staying focused is also a skill that we can work on. When we have important gigs or are playing a lot, it is easy to lose focus. Improve your ability to focus by ridding yourself of all distractions during your practice sessions, and staying in focus during stressful times will become a lot easier.
- Keep Your Instrument In Good Condition- Make sure you are doing your daily and weekly maintenance to prevent any major repairs. Keep your instrument serviced with regular cleanings and take care of any issues when they are small. You can’t perform your best if your instrument is not functioning properly.